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The modernization of Japan's defense strategy is not just about military capabilities, it is also about building consensus and fostering public understanding.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 21, 2024

The winding road to Japan's defense modernization

The government's efforts to engage the public on defense issues are crucial for building consensus and ensuring the sustainability of defense reforms.
Though the West has supplied desperately needed weapons and ammunition, it has done little else to address Ukraine’s needs or establish shared goals.
COMMENTARY / World
May 22, 2024

The war in Ukraine needs a stronger unified Western strategy

Though the West has supplied desperately needed weapons and ammunition, it has done little else to address Ukraine’s needs.
A protester holds a placard stating "Sunak Supports Genocide" in support of Palestinians as police stand guard during a visit from Britain's Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader Rishi Sunak to Cannock College, in Cannock, Staffordshire, England, on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
May 25, 2024

Sometimes U.S. and U.K. politics seem in lock step. Not this year.

In 2016, Britain voted for Brexit and America for Trump, heralding a populist wave. Both countries face pivotal elections this year — but their paths appear to have diverged.
U.S. President Joe Biden, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak deliver remarks after a trilateral AUKUS meeting, in San Diego in March 2023.
COMMENTARY / World
May 28, 2024

Who will 'plug and play' with AUKUS?

Tokyo, Ottawa, and Seoul must demonstrate their value in AUKUS by contributing sustainably and enhancing its effectiveness in promoting a rules-based Indo-Pacific order.
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators hold a rally on London’s Waterloo Bridge on May 11. The current protests have many similarities to the student uprisings of the late 1960s, only the latter envisioned a new political movement to ameliorate the ills of their time.
COMMENTARY / World
May 31, 2024

Echoes of despair amid global outrage over Gaza conflict

Everyone knows that the situation in Gaza is unacceptable. But a great deal of energy has been devoted to postponing the kind of intervention that the crisis requires.
Christina Griffin-Jones was a big part of a historically strong U.S. women's team at the 2023 Sumo World Championships.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Jun 5, 2024

American sumo organization becomes battleground in fight for equality

At the heart of the fight is growing opposition to a longtime federation trustee who has not been shy about expressing his homophobic views.
A welder works on a K9 Howitzer at Hanwha Aerospace’s manufacturing facility in Changwon, South Korea.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 6, 2024

South Korea is making weapons faster and cheaper than the U.S.

Hanwha Aerospace touts smooth production lines, intact supply chains and faster delivery times, along with lower overheads than its competitors.
U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell delivers remarks during a press conference following the announcement that the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged, in Washington on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 13, 2024

Fed leaves rates unchanged and says cuts delayed to possibly December

U.S. policymakers are content to leave rates where they are until the economy sends a clear signal that something else is needed.
A welcome sign in Skegness, England, on Tuesday. Britain's last general election was all about leaving the European Union but this time around Brexit is hardly getting a mention.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 16, 2024

Why no one is talking about Brexit in the U.K. election

Brexit fatigue and barely healed scars from the divisive vote have the main parties largely avoiding the toxic issue before the July 4 poll.
A protest accusing Deutsche Bank of greenwashing. Its subsidiary DWS was fined $25 million last year for misstating its environmental, social and governance activities.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 17, 2024

Too many companies make false claims about their social impact

Exaggerated claims about companies' positive social and environmental impact ruin our chances of achieving a sustainable future. An entirely new system is needed.
Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who is in custody on espionage charges, waves behind a glass wall of an enclosure for defendants as he attends a court hearing in Moscow on April 23.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 18, 2024

Russia sets closed espionage trial for U.S. reporter Gershkovich

The White House has called the charges "ridiculous," and President Joe Biden has said the reporter's detention is "totally illegal."
Balaji Srinivasan addresses the Singapore Fintech Festival in November 2022. A techno-libertarian, Srinivasan, who made his name as an anti-government crusader, tried to attach himself to the U.S. government when he was under consideration for a position in the Donald Trump administration.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 19, 2024

How techno-libertarians fell in love with big government

When faced with the prospect of the government becoming a major client for Silicon Valley techno-libertarians, once-principled opposition to state power dissipates.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks about student debt in Madison, Wisconsin, in April.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 26, 2024

How Trump and Biden might attack each other at their first 2024 debate

Immigration, the economy, democracy and abortion rights: Here are the main ways each candidate is likely to slam the other at Thursday’s high-stakes confrontation.
Supporters listen as President Joe Biden speaks at a reelection campaign rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Friday, one day after his debate with former President Donald Trump.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 2, 2024

The road to a crisis: How Democrats let Biden glide to renomination

Many fear U.S. President Joe Biden will lose to former President Donald Trump and drag Democrats to devastating defeats in congressional and state elections.
Yohei Kono, leader of a Japanese delegation to promote economic ties with China (left), speaks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Beijing on Monday.
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2024

Japan group shows concerns about safety of Japanese in China

The delegation leader asked China to identify whether the Suzhou knife attack last week specifically targeted Japanese nationals.
International Criminal Court prosecutor Karim Khan speaks during an interview at The Hague, in the Netherlands, in February.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 6, 2024

ICC prosecutor opted for warrants over visit to Gaza

The sudden cancellation of a planned visit to the Gaza Strip, Jerusalem and Ramallah has angered Washington and London.
U.S. President Donald Trump stands among other leaders as he attends a North Atlantic Treaty Organization Plenary Session at the NATO summit in Watford, near London on Dec. 4, 2019.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 8, 2024

Elephant in room at NATO: Would Trump blow it up?

This week's Washington summit aims to "Trump-proof" NATO by expanding its role, especially in supporting Ukraine.
U.S. President Joe Biden looks at his watch as he stands on the balcony during an Independence Day celebration on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 9, 2024

Biden tells wavering Democrats he will not abandon campaign

President Joe Biden faces a critical week as he tries to shore up a campaign that has been on defense since a shaky June 27 debate.
U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks at the 2024 NATO Summit in Washington on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 11, 2024

NATO allies gloomy on Biden’s prospects seek out Trump circle

Leaders at the alliances summit watched Biden's every move for another gaffe that would further undermine his electoral hopes.
U.S. Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, a U.S. House representative from Texas
BUSINESS / Tech
Jul 12, 2024

U.S. lawmakers raise concerns over Microsoft deal with Emirati AI firm

The Republican lawmakers' letter is a sign of growing concern about the lack of regulations around the export of sensitive artificial intelligence models.
Then-U.S. President Donald Trump gestures during a meeting on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Watford, England, in December 2019.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 13, 2024

Whether it’s Biden or Trump, Europe knows it must stand alone

European officials say they’re expecting both Trump and Biden to concentrate more on China at the expense of Europe.
An aerial view shows the stage where Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump had been standing during an assassination attempt the day before, and the roof of a nearby building where a gunman was shot dead by law enforcement, in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Sunday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jul 15, 2024

Shooter came within inches of killing Trump, but left few clues as to why

Thomas Matthew Crooks is not known to be political, and the FBI has yet to identify a motive behind the 20-year-old nursing home aide’s actions.
The background footage shows a Chinese Coast Guard ship using a water cannon against a Filipino resupply vessel, during a news conference at the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila in August 2023.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 18, 2024

The risky business of standing up to Beijing

Philippines faces balancing act between economic interests and territorial rights.
U.S. President Joe Biden and former President Barack Obama attend a campaign fundraiser at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on June 15.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 20, 2024

Secluded at beach house, Biden stews at allies’ pressure to drop out

He considers former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as the main instigator but is irritated at ex-President Barack Obama, seeing him as a puppet master behind the scenes.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer during a news conference near Oxford, England, on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 20, 2024

U.K.'s Starmer sees Trump comeback as a warning about his own danger

The U.K. prime minister's overarching aim is to avoid the struggles other world leaders are facing at the hands of the populist right.
People visit the Volkswagen booth at the Beijing International Automotive Exhibition, on April 25.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 24, 2024

Volkswagen is reeling in China. Can EVs help it grow in the U.S.?

Volkswagen CFO Arno Antlitz said the company expects to continue losing China market share and hopes to merely maintain its position in Europe.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to a joint meeting of the U.S. Congress in Washington on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 25, 2024

Netanyahu sketches vague outline for postwar Gaza

Israeli leader also accused anti-Israel protesters as standing with Hamas, charging without evidence that they were backed by Iran
Flavor Flav is at the Paris Games as the hype man for the U.S. water polo team.
OLYMPICS
Jul 26, 2024

Hip-hop legend Flavor Flav relishes role as hype man for U.S. water polo team

The rapper is using his fame to help support the U.S. team.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks to the women and men's National Collegiate Athletic Association champion teams in her first public appearance since President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 race, on the South Lawn of the White House, in Washington on Monday.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 27, 2024

Silent no more, Harris seeks her own voice without breaking with Biden

The U.S. vice president's expressions of concern for Palestinian suffering marked a shift in emphasis from the president’s statements.
World Anti-Doping Agency President Witold Banka holds a news conference in Paris on July 25. WADA and the entire global anti-doping system have been under intensifying scrutiny in recent months.
OLYMPICS
Jul 31, 2024

Anti-doping agency acknowledges concern over use of tainted food as excuse

The global anti-doping regulator disclosed Tuesday that it is investigating why athletes in China and other countries who are testing positive for banned drugs are escaping discipline through claims that they have unwittingly ingested the performance-enhancing substances through food.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji